Hodges Tabbed a Finalist for Ivy Defensive Player of the Year

Zach Hodges is one of two finalists for the Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year Award (Gil Talbot).

PRINCETON, N.J. – Junior defensive end Zach Hodges of the Harvard football team has been named a finalist for the 2013 Asa S. Bushnell Cup, which honors the Ivy League Football Players of the Year.

Hodges is a finalist for the Defensive Player of the Year Award along with Princeton defensive lineman Caraun Reid, while Princeton quarterback Quinn Epperly and Brown running back John Spooney are the finalists for Offensive Player of the Year.

The 2013 presentation of the Asa S. Bushnell Cup is Monday, Dec. 9, the day before the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) Annual Awards Dinner, at a special reception and press conference beginning at Noon in the Vanderbilt Room of the famed Waldorf=Astoria Hotel in New York City. The presentation will begin at 12:30 p.m. and will be streamed live and free of charge on The Ivy League® Digital Network.

The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) and the Ivy League are partnering for the fourth-consecutive year to co-host the presentation of the Asa S. Bushnell Cup. The four finalists, along with their head coaches, will be on hand at the presentation.

George Pyne, NFF Board Member and President of IMG Worldwide's Sports & Entertainment Group, will once again emcee the event. Ivy League Executive Director Robin Harris will be on hand to unveil the winners' names in front of a packed crowd of media representatives, NFF Board members and notable Ivy League football alumni and dignitaries.

Hodges, a native of Atlanta, Ga., completed his junior season as one of the best defensive lineman in the country. He made 40 tackles, including 11.5 stops for a loss, and recorded 6.5 sacks. He ranked fifth in the nation with four forced fumbles and also recovered three fumbles. Hodges, a unanimous All-Ivy League first team selection, paced the Ancient Eight in sacks and was second in tackles for a loss. After just three seasons in Cambridge, he already stands fifth in school history with 18.5 career sacks.

Hodges, who helped Harvard rank seventh in the nation in rush defense (97.3 yards allowed per game), recovered two fumbles, including one for a 53-yard touchdown in the Crimson's opener at San Diego Sept. 21. He followed that performance with three tackles for a loss against Brown on Sept. 28. Hodges forced and recovered a fumble at Holy Cross Oct. 5 and then recorded a season-high two sacks at Cornell Oct. 12.

Hodges helped Harvard finish 9-1 overall and 6-1 in the Ivy League, earning a share of the program's 15th Ivy League title.

ASA S. BUSHNELL CUP HISTORY
Presented annually since 1970, The Asa S. Bushnell Cup honors its namesake, a 1921 Princeton alumnus and the commissioner of the Eastern College Athletic Conference from 1938 to 1970. The Bushnell Cup is awarded by a vote of the Ivy League's eight head football coaches to the players who display outstanding qualities of leadership, competitive spirit, contribution to the team and accomplishments on the field.

From 1970 to 2010, the Bushnell Cup recognized an Ivy League Player of the Year (or co-Players of the Year if there was a tie in voting). Beginning with the 2010 season, the award was presented as a part of the festivities surrounding the NFF Annual Awards Dinner with four finalists named a week prior to the presentation. Beginning with the 2011 season, the award began recognizing Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year, honoring each as a recipient of the Asa S. Bushnell Cup. Two offensive finalists and two defensive finalists are named with the Players of the Year unveiled at the presentation.